


Knitted Warmth

by ericsonclan



Category: The Walking Dead (Telltale Video Game)
Genre: Christmas Fluff, F/M, Gen, Gentle Kissing, Gift Giving, M/M, Scarves, Snow, Winter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-09
Updated: 2020-12-09
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:34:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,463
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27980856
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ericsonclan/pseuds/ericsonclan
Summary: Nurgul visits Gabe to give a special gift.
Relationships: Nurgul/Gabe (Walking Dead: Ties That Bind), Santiago/Javier (Walking Dead: Ties That Bind)
Kudos: 3





	Knitted Warmth

**Author's Note:**

> (by Laura)

Nurgul’s breath floated before her in the air as she walked down the streets of New Richmond, a small parcel tucked under one arm. Her cheeks were red from the cold and her fingers wriggled within her pockets, trying to warm up. It certainly was a chilly winter; that would only make her present all the more special though. Spotting Gabe’s house, she skipped up the steps to the door and knocked on it briskly, wriggling with impatience to be let in.

Javi opened the door, but it took a second for Nurgul to take in what he was wearing. A red clown nose pinched the bridge of his own and upon his head was a headband with makeshift antlers attached. Javi smiled brightly at the girl. “Nurgul, come on in! You must be freezing!” He opened the door wider, allowing the Kazakh girl to bustle in, shaking the snow off her boots. Santiago popped his head out from the living room. He also had a pair of makeshift antlers on and his nose had been painting a bright red. “Nurgul! What a nice surprise! Are you here to help Javi and me with antler prep?”

Nurgul looked between the two men in confusion, causing Javi to chuckle. “Santi and I volunteered to help with costumes for the Christmas play the kids are putting on this year. We’ve been gathering together any craft supplies we can scavenge to get a full set of reindeer for Santa,”

Nurgul wrinkled her nose in amusement. “It looks like the two of you have got a great start. Which reindeer are you: Dasher and Prancer?”

“Well, I don’t know about myself,” Santiago said, stepping forward and pressing a kiss to Javi’s cheek, “But this one is definitely Cupid,”

Javi blushed a bit at the compliment, fiddling with one of Santiago’s antlers before turning back to Nurgul. “Would you like some Christmas tea? We melted some peppermint sticks into this batch,”

“Actually… I’m looking for Gabe,” Nurgul’s eyes fell to the floor as she awkwardly toed at the entryway rug. She didn’t have to look at Javi to know the grin that must be upon his face. The man was an incorrigible tease.

“But of course! Gabe’s actually not here right now. He’s on watch duty over by the west wall,”

“Oh, ok,” That wasn’t far from here, just a bit of a stroll. “I’ll head out then,”

“What’s that I see tucked under your arm?” Santiago asked, gesturing toward the parcel wrapped in brown butcher paper that Nurgul held. “A present for Gabe, but none for us?” A fake pout crossed the man’s lips as he teased her.

“Yours will be coming later. I have to make them first,” Nurgul replied, smiling knowingly as Santiago’s false pout changed to a grin.

“Alright then, I guess we’ll be seeing you later,” Javi opened the door he had just closed, ushering Nurgul out. An involuntary shiver ran up the girl’s spine as she stepped back out into the cold. “Don’t stay out for too long – it’s a cold one today,”

“And give Gabe a kiss to warm him up!” Santiago called over Javi’s shoulder. That made Nurgul blush.

“Santi!” Javi scolded, turning around as he closed the door. “Honestly, you’re worse than me!” The door shut with a decisive thunk and Nurgul was left to make her way to the west wall herself. A smattering of snow was beginning to make its way down upon the quiet community. Everyone who didn’t have work outside was indoors, trying to get as warm as possible. Shifting the parcel under her arm, Nurgul headed out in search of Gabe.

It wasn’t hard to spot him. Even from a distance Nurgul could make out the red beanie that the boy was never without. At this time of year the beanie was pulled further down to cover the teen’s ears. Approaching from behind, Nurgul saw that Noah was up there on watch as well. “Noah! Can I borrow Gabe for a minute?”

Noah and Gabe turned round at the sound of her voice, both of them smiling at the girl.

“Hey, Nurgul. Yeah, sure. Nothing much happening today. Gabe, go on down and get some quality time with your girl,”

Gabe looked flustered by Noah’s words but soon followed them. Climbing down the ladder from the watchtower, he skipped the last few rungs and hopped to the ground, walking over to stand by Nurgul. Their hands immediately met and Nurgul’s eyes widened as she felt how cold Gabe’s were.

“Your hands are freezing! Don’t you have any gloves with you?”

“Well, I did have a pair, but I ended up loaning them to Jimmy last week when he had watch since his have holes in them,”

“And let me guess,” Nurgul said, raising an eyebrow, “You never got them back?”

“Well, it’s only been a week. Next time I see him I’ll mention it,”

Nurgul shook her head. Sometimes Gabe was too kind for his own good. She had a feeling this present wouldn’t be the last she’d make for him. She’d start on a set of mittens as soon as she got home.

“So, what’s up?” Gabe asked softly, his thumbs gently rubbing the calluses on Nurgul’s hands. He smiled down shyly at her, a look that had Nurgul’s heart thumping faster against her ribcage.

“Well, I know it’s early, but I have a Christmas present for you,”

Gabe’s eyes widened in surprise. “Already? I, um… I haven’t thought of what to get you yet,” His voice was quiet, embarrassed. It made Nurgul giggle.

“You don’t need to give one now. I just wanted to give mine so you could start putting it to good use. Here,” She handed over the parcel, the butcher paper crinkling under her hands. “Open it,”

Hesitantly, Gabe ripped the paper off. His mouth opened in surprise at the gift. It was a scarf, bright red and knit with a variety of intricate cables, giving the design depth and beauty. Softly his chapped fingers traced one of the edges. “It’s so soft! Did you make it yourself?”

“Yep!” Nurgul nodded proudly. “I know I’ve mentioned how much I like to knit before, but with all the craziness of the past few months I haven’t been able to do it for a while. I wanted to show you my skills in action and also give you something that can keep you warm. Go ahead – put it on,” Her hands reached out to help Gabe remove the scarf from the wrappings and wrap it snugly round his neck. Tucking the edges under Gabe’s chin, Nurgul smiled up at him happily. “It looks good on you. Red is definitely your color,”

Gabe blushed at her words. Fiddling with the edges of the scarf, he chuckled as the smile on his face grew. “Now you’ll be able to spot me even easier,” His eyes returned to Nurgul’s. “Thanks, Nuri. This is amazing,”

Nurgul’s heart fluttered within her at the nickname. “You’re amazing,” Before she could rethink it, her hands came up to grab the edges of the scarf and she pulled Gabe in for a kiss. The edges of their lips were cold but grew warm as they pressed together. Nurgul pulled away faster than she would have liked, overwhelmed by her own actions.

Gabe looked starstruck by the kiss, his gaze drifting into the middle distance as he was caught up in his own thoughts. They hadn’t shared many kisses yet in the short time they’d been together. Each one made him feel like it was the first all over again. He refocused though as he felt Nurgul’s hands squeeze his cold ones. “That was awesome. I didn’t know I was getting two gifts today,”

Nurgul bit her lip, too flustered to comment on the kiss any further. “Can I see you later? Once you’re done with watch?”

“Definitely. Want to meet in the main square?”

“Sounds good,” If Nurgul had to face Gabe’s uncles again today, she’d just about die of embarrassment. Better to keep things public. “What time do you get off?”

“Four. So I’ll see you at 4:15?”

“I’ll be there with bells on,” With one final squeeze of Gabe’s hands, Nurgul let go, pulling away and walking backwards. “See you then!”

Gabe waved happily before climbing back up the ladder to resume his post.

Nurgul finally turned round. Her heart raced inside her at the memory of the kiss and the promise of more time with Gabe. It had been a long time since she’d been this happy. As snowflakes began to drift down faster, Nurgul raised her head, playfully sticking out her tongue to let them fall upon it. This truly was a magical winter.


End file.
